There is a crime wave that is sweeping Prince Edward Island, one that Islanders have known about forever. It is the crime of neglect.
This time of year, farmers all over this fair isle are harvesting their crops: storing, bagging, processing, shipping and leaving thousands of pounds of excess produce rotting in the fields. Hundreds of thousands of pounds of potatoes, carrots, turnips, squash, onions, and more. Enough produce to feed every man, woman, and child on P.E.I.
The farmers on P.E.I are professionals, and they realize the futility of harvesting produce they can’t sell. That’s why the conveyor belts that scoop up all that food from the fields have holes in them: the small, unsellable vegetables can drop through and be left in the field – where they rot.
Expert studies tell us that up to 20 per cent of Islanders have food insecurity issues. That means one in five P.E.I. school children don’t have an adequate breakfast before school. And if the children don’t have enough to eat, the parents don’t either.
This issue of food insecurity on P.E.I. has been discussed before, and there are some excellent organizations that are doing their best to change that situation - but they don’t have the resources. Besides, they shouldn’t be the only ones looking out for the welfare of their neighbors - it is time for the government of PEI to step in and put their weight behind this issue.
Will it cost a lot of money? No. In the long run it will save an enormous amount of money for P.E.I. Here’s why: People who are fed, work better. People who are fed, think better. People, who are fed, learn better. They also participate more, and they have a better outlook on life; a better quality of life.
Our government needs a dedicated co-ordinator to work with organizations on P.E.I. to start gleaning farmers’ fields every time a field is harvested. With government co-ordination, P.E.I. organizations could mobilize an entire army of workers from: 4-H, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, Women’s Institute, cadets, church youth groups, Farmers Helping Farmers, garden clubs, students from Holland College, UPEI and the list goes on.
The government could also encourage the people who need the food to get directly involved in the harvest. We cannot leave this vitally important effort to just a few groups of volunteers doing the best they can - all of PEI needs to mobilize to feed itself.
I’m calling on the P.E.I. government to step up. Feeding ourselves on P.E.I. should be the number one priority for the government – only good things can come from it. And the food is right there, free for the taking. We need the full weight of the P.E.I. government behind this initiative – and we need it now.
When you drive to work, or go to church, or just step outside to get the newspaper, take a look around our Million-Acre Farm. Then tell our government that a huge part of P.E.I.’s food bounty is out there rotting in the fields. With all the food that is lying there, going to rot, there should not be even one Islander who is going hungry. Not one.
- Pete Blanding of Long River is a well-known P.E.I. singer, songwriter, musician and community activist.
